ZDNET Key Takeaways
- For $899, iPhone 16 Plus It offers most of the big-screen iPhone experience, while still being $300 cheaper than the Pro Max.
- Configurable action buttons and camera controls give users more iOS shortcuts than ever before. Expect a learning curve, let your imagination go wild, and have fun.
- Features we were hoping Apple would improve this year remain the same, including the 60Hz refresh rate and slower-than-average 20W wired charging.
As a technology enthusiast, the most powerful, most wallet-friendly device a company offers is always the default, so each year as the newest iPhone arrives, testing the standard model brings me back to mainstream reality.
These are the iPhones that most people buy, Counterpoint Research It has been reported that the iPhone 15 will outsell the iPhone 15 Pro in 2024. The previous year, the iPhone 14 outsold both the iPhone 14 Pro and the iPhone 14 Pro Max.
Plus, we’ve used every model of the iPhone 16 and here are our best buying advice for 2024:
After testing the iPhone 16 Plus over the past two days (and with more evaluations planned over the coming weeks), we expect to see similar consumer trends with this year’s iPhones, but the gap will be wider than ever.
With this year’s standard iPhone models, Apple is employing what I like to call the “sibling” strategy. You know how older brothers and sisters tend to get the latest and greatest thing first: shirts, toys, shoes, etc. A year later, or when the excitement for something fades, it’s passed on to their younger sibling, so what’s old becomes new again. That’s exactly what Apple did with last year’s iPhone 15 Pro models and this year’s iPhone 16, and I don’t mind it at all.
Plus: iPhone 15 vs iPhone 16: Should you upgrade to Apple’s latest model?
of new For example, the Action button replaces the physical mute switch toggle and can be assigned to its own functions, such as turning on the flashlight, starting a voice memo, launching the camera, etc. Of course, you can also configure the Action button to switch between alert and silent.
We live in an age of iPhone freedom, so you should embrace the freedom of customization. My action button is currently set to “Turn on AirDrop for 10 minutes” because I test the phone with the camera and frequently upload images and videos to my MacBook. This prompt may change by the weekend, but that’s the beauty of the new hardware keys.
Calling this iPhone 16 color “pink” doesn’t really seem like a good idea; we’d rather call it “atomic, raspberry, flamingo, bubblegum blast.”
Kelly Wang/ZDNET
There’s also a new camera control on the bottom right side of the phone, which looks and functions similarly to the one on the Pro version. At the most basic level, pressing the camera control lets you take a photo or start recording a video. In a bit of Apple magic, a light, gentle press of that same key (Apple tells you not to call it a button) reveals sliders for the latest camera settings, including zoom range, exposure, f-stop, and more.
Apple also says the iPhone 16 is much easier to repair than its predecessor. Here’s how:
Tap the camera control twice to bring up a carousel of shooting modes and settings, then tap again to access each one. Finally, swipe across the touch-capacitive surface to cycle through the settings. That said, there is a learning curve to the camera controls, and I wouldn’t have been upset if Apple had made this feature exclusive to the Pro models. Since they aren’t, for many users this will be their first experience adjusting camera settings on such a limited level, and that’s very exciting.
The camera controls work whether you hold your phone in portrait or landscape mode, and if you’re left-handed, you can also flip the phone over so the camera is on the right-hand side and press the keys with your thumbs.
Kelly Wang/ZDNET
Going into testing, my biggest concern was whether the placement (or ergonomics) of the camera controls would ruin an otherwise genius feature. Because the keys are located near the center of the side edge (even more so if you’re using the smaller iPhone 16), you end up pressing down with your index finger instead of your thumb to take a photo. You’ll have to retrain your muscle memory here; I often found myself habitually tapping the screen to focus and shoot.
Camera controls encourage you to hold your iPhone in landscape orientation. This takes advantage of the iPhone 16’s latest feature that lets you take immersive spatial photos and videos for VR. This is another feature carried over from last year’s Pro model, but it’s not stressful to use. Just as you need a hard-to-find 8K TV to watch 8K video, you need a compatible VR headset to watch spatial content. I’ve seen some spatial videos on both the Apple Vision Pro and Meta Quest 3, and they’re more immersive than any other digital content, but the ability to shoot them should be considered a bonus rather than a necessity when considering the iPhone 16.
Additionally, the iPhone 16 models will have a new camera button, whose functions are as follows:
Perhaps more useful is the new 12MP ultra-wide camera: With an aperture of f/2.2 (versus last year’s f/2.4), the iPhone 16 can let in more light (and therefore more detail) for macro shots, day or night, much like what the iPhone 15 Pro’s ultra-wide lens did.
Photos taken with the iPhone 16’s 48MP Fusion camera and the 12MP ultra-wide camera, which also doubles as a macro lens.
Kelly Wang/ZDNET
Combine the practicality of ultra-wide with the new 48MP Fusion camera (which combines main and 2x digital zoom capabilities) and the ability to change photo styles before and after shooting, and you have one of the most versatile iPhone camera systems ever. Whether I was trying to recreate the vibrant colors of my dinner in a dimly lit restaurant, extracting the details of a tiny succulent, or capturing the controlled chaos of my morning commute, there was little I felt the iPhone 16 Plus couldn’t do. of shot.
Also, How to Clear Your iPhone Cache (And Why You Should)
I say rarely because one night I wanted to take a photo of the moon. It was closer to the Earth than ever before and glowing a warm orange, making it the perfect photo spot to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival with my family. But the iPhone 16’s zoom limit of 2x barely captured the essence of the moment. When I hesitantly maxed out the digital zoom, noise was noticeable and I really missed the 5x optical camera on the Pro model.
The iPhone 16 Plus (7.03 ounces) weighs slightly less than the iPhone 15 Plus (7.1 ounces).
Kelly Wang/ZDNET
We were hoping to see at least a 90Hz refresh rate on the new iPhones, but assuming ProMotion (120Hz) is limited to Pro devices only, Apple is still shipping standard models with 60Hz panels. This is by no means a deciding factor, and frankly, users moving from older non-Pro iPhone models don’t know what they’re missing. Rendering fewer frames also helps with the iPhone 16’s battery life, which has been adequate so far.
But in 2024, even $150 Android phones will have smoother display tech, and if they had a 90Hz panel, I’d trade off my iPhone 15 in a heartbeat.
Plus: iOS 18 will change the way you charge your iPhone
To Apple’s credit, the iPhone 16 models have bumped up wireless charging speeds (up to 25W via MagSafe), but wired charging speeds remain at 20W. In my testing, the iPhone 16 Plus took about an hour and 47 minutes to charge from 0 to 100%, which is noticeably slower than most flagship smartphones on the market (priced at $700+).
ZDNET BUYING ADVICE (for now)
One thing we haven’t touched on yet in this review: Apple Intelligence, the suite of artificial intelligence tools sprinkled throughout iOS 18. That’s because the bulk of the AI experiences, including an improved Siri, call recording, and text generation, won’t be available until October unless you download the iOS 18.1 public beta today. iPhone 16 When it comes to AI capabilities, that’s not the case, at least not yet.
Until the software is officially released, I’ll continue to evaluate the iPhone 16 as it is and let you know how it performs in terms of battery life, video capture, everyday performance, and more.
